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Monday, August 19, 2013

DIY Upholstered Headboard with Nailhead Detailed Arms

Posted by
Lisa

Update--WHERE I GOT MY SUPPLIES FROM:

I keep getting asked, so I'm putting all the links right here. Comment if you have any questions and I'll get back to you ASAP. Good luck! -Lisa
- Foam Pad <--so much cheaper than buying custom foam! (p.s. That's the foam pad I used, but if want a more plush looking headboard, you could get this one).
- Buttons <--(you'll need 30 buttons, so get 2 packs)
- Batting
- Upholstery nails/tacks (smooth finish) <--You'll need 5 packs to get 500 tacks (I used about 480 tacks).
- Upholstery Needle
- Staple Gun
- Fabric (Yep, that's right. I used IKEA curtains. Note: On one side of the headboard, I had less than an inch of extra fabric to spare, so if you're risk-averse, you could just buy regular fabric.)
- Bottle of Downy Wrinkle Release

It's done! I saw this tutorial for a DIY Upholstered Headboard back
in January, ordered all my supplies . . . then proceeded to have
morning sickness/lack of energy for the next several months. Plus, my
handsome carpenter (hubby) was out of town for months, so he didn't have
time to get the initial frame done. But alas, we finally got around to
it and it's done!

I
thought the tutorial was very helpful (she answered so many questions
in the comments, so search there if you have questions), so thank you
sarah m. dorsery designs. I did my own thing for the buttons, patterning
more after this restoration hardware upholstered bed.

Her cost estimations were pretty close--I spent about $150, although my breakdown was a little different. Wood was more expensive, but I saved other places, like on foam (I ordered this full-sized memory foam mattress pad--worked perfectly) and on fabric (I used IKEA curtains--the same ones I used in my living room).
$150 is definitely on the high end for my usual type of DIY project,
but we really needed a headboard and similar headboards sometimes retail
for hundreds more, so I'll take it.

Some tips I learned along the way that I wanted to pass on to anyone attempting this project:

I secured my buttons differently.
Sarah and her husband secured the buttons to the back using staples. I
found it was easier and sturdier to fold pieces of scrap fabric multiple
times and use that to secure the buttons. A'like so:

I ironed my fabric before
stapling to the board and adding my buttons. Pull the fabric tight,
but--especially if you used memory foam--don't freak out if your
headboard looks like this (super wrinkly) after adding all the buttons: (p.s. You'll need a staple gun to secure the fabric to the back of the board--if you need one, this is a good (and cheap!) one.)

I was *this* close to cutting all the buttons off and starting over with
thicker foam and pulling the fabric tighter, but thank goodness I was
too tired to mess with it anymore that day because by the next morning,
the memory foam had expanded more and helped smooth out the wrinkles. In
addition, I used a travel-sized bottle of Downy wrinkle release to
help where the fabric was being pulled too tight and consequently
puckering.

Adding
the arms was probably the most cumbersome part of the project.
Definitely clear away little holes for the screws, like Sarah says. And
if at first you don't succeed, try, try again. We had to completely
unscrew one of the arms and redo it before we got it on right. We found
the best method was to put the whole headboard and arm on our kitchen
table while we screwed it in.

Then
put on a couple chick flicks, mark where you want all the nailheads to
go (I did them every 1/2"), and go nuts! Not gonna lie--it was a lot of
nailing.

Here is the finished product!

And here it is in our master bedroom. To see more DIY project detail
(how we did the wall moulding, sconces, pillows, etc), subscribed and
stay tuned--I'll be posting more detail on our Master Bedroom renovation
soon.

For more personal finance tips, DIY Projects, and organization, "like" us on Facebook," add our blog to your readers (www.moneyhipmamas.com) or subscribe by e-mail (we post once or twice a month).

55 comments:

This looks SO good. I am beyond impressed. I have never done a DIY project before, but I'm about to move, so I've started thinking about updating my armoire and reupholstering an old chair when I get to the new place...

Do it! I painted my armoire and reupholstered an ottoman here:http://www.moneyhipmamas.com/2013/07/diy-home-makeover-living-room.html.I must warn you, though, DIY-ing is addicting. Once you do one project successfully, you can't stop yourself from doing another...and another...

The headboard is amazing (I can't imagine making that) but I want to know more about the molding on the walls. It really makes the room look custom designed and finished. Any tips? What was your inspiration?

I'll post more detail about how we did the moulding soon. It's not too difficult, but definitely takes time. My inspiration was from the Restoration Hardware catalog. See here: http://media.restorationhardware.com/is/image/rhis/sp13ss_026_sanfrancisco_dn?fmt=jpeg&iccEmbed=0&resMode=sharp2&wid=1000&op_usm=1,1,6,0&op_sharpen=0&qty=90,0

And here: http://media.restorationhardware.com/is/image/rhis/sp13ss_008_paris_bed?fmt=jpeg&iccEmbed=0&resMode=sharp2&wid=1000&op_usm=1,1,6,0&op_sharpen=0&qty=90,0

Lisa you are so awesome. I see these kind of DIY on Pinterest, and I'm just too lazy!! (And we live in a rental while my husband is in Medical school so we aren't really investing in furniture and stuff right now). I just want you to know you are so cool.

Haha, you're so sweet. Truth be told, I didn't decorate our apartments AT ALL (our side tables: moving boxes covered with sheets--seriously). And I'm actually glad I waited a while to decorate our house because it took me a while to figure out how I wanted everything arranged.

Forgot to mention, the curtains were just barely wide enough for the headboard (within an inch or two on each side), but it worked. Just to warn you so you don't freak out. But if you use a thicker foam pad, it might not work. Or you'd have to make the headboard a bit shorter (which is fine, just made the legs the same length--the bed itself covers a fair amount of the headboard). Good luck! Let me know if you have any more questions!

Thanks Jade! I actually looked for regular foam in the right size but in my search, the memory foam was actually cheaper. So if you can find regular foam at a good price, do it! Thanks for the comment!

Hi! Beautiful (and inspirational) work! I have an existing head/footboard set that I'm just plain tired of! I was wondering, do you think it's feasible to cover an existing headboard in a similar fashion to what you did with your project? Thank you in advance!

I think it's definitely feasible. I did a similar thing when I re-upholstered an ottoman. The tricky thing is you'd need to be able to drill holes through it, both to put the buttons on and if you what to attach arms to the headboard like this one. But definitely do-able!

Hi lisa, love your headboard! I just gathered most of my supplies today and waiting for buttons and nail heads in the mail :) i have some questions for you. This is my very first DIY project ever and i am a bit intimidated. When framing the plywood, did u use a certain GLUE or did you NAIL it? The Ikea curtains you used, were the measurements 55x98 or 55x118 ? I have grey curtains from Ikea i want to use they are 55x98. Was there a certain type of batting that you used? Also how did you locate your holes (that were drilled into the Plywood) through the foam fabric and batting? Did you mark the holes on your fabric as well?? Also Will I be okay making my winged arms a little bit longer the 60"? My frame is raised so i thought i needed to make the winged arms 64".

Sorry for all the questions and thank you in advance for your time. Pray for me!

Hi! Thanks for the comment. First of all--I'm sure you'll do great. This was only my second DIY Upholstery project, the first being an ottoman (and all I really learned from that is that trying to gather fabric for the buttons is a nightmare and not worth the trouble--which is why I didn't bother this time). Anyway, to answer your questions:- We framed the plywood using nails.- The IKEA curtains I used were 55x98. The 98 isn't the problem, it's the 55. It was just barely, barely, BARELY wide enough to cover the height of the headboard. But it worked!- I used normal, medium weight batting from the fabric store.- We marked where the holes needed to go on the fabric itself, then used scissors to make a hole in the fabric and batting, then marked the holes again on the board itself before drilling. FYI- Attaching the arms in the trickiest part; you have to clear out enough fabric so the screw won't snag (and get tangled), but you don't want to clear away too much (otherwise it'll show once the arms are put in). Not sure if that makes sense.- And yes, you can make the arms as long as you want. That part is totally adaptable.- And yes, I used a regular hammer. The nailheads I used had the "hammered" look so I used just the hammer and nothing else, but if you're using a smooth nailhead, you might want to cover it with felt or something so the hammer doesn't damage the nailhead.

Oh man, I may have to reconsider using the curtains. May i ask you what size(thickness) was the memory foam you used? I just want to make sure that my foam isn't thicker then yours, leaving me with less wiggle room with the fabric.

My foam mattress pad was 1 inch thick so any thicker and yes, you may need a wider piece of fabric (although...I guess you could add a strip to the bottom to widen it since you don't see the bottom part of the headboard due to the mattress).

Hi Lisa, I live this project, looks amazing! I'm hoping to start my attempt soon just waiting for my items in the post :) I was wondering what are the measurements in-between the buttons? Thank you, Vicky

Hey Vicky! The buttons are 7.5" apart, as are the rows themselves. It was a little work to sketch out beforehand to make sure the buttons would be centered once you add the arms and everything. I started by drawing lines across the board to mark each row (7.5" apart--starting at the top). Then I went back and marked where the buttons would go on each row. The second row from the top has an odd number of buttons, so start there (and work your way out) because you'll want to make sure the center button is in the very center of the board.

Yay I finished mine a couple of days ago, it's awesome, thanks for inspiring me to attempt it, I've never done a DIY project this big, I used a different method to put the fabric on but followed your instructions for everything else, Thanks Lisa :)

Yes, Vicky!! Thank you for the update! You're the first person to comment and let me know you completed it. What did you do differently with the fabric? Any tips for readers who attempt this in the future?

Thanks Lisa :) I found a video on YouTube, instead of securing the fabric then putting the buttons on, I left the fabric loose and put the buttons on first, starting with the middle and working out in a circular pattern, it seems a hard way of doing it but it's not as hard as it looks honestly. Here's the link for the YouTube video I used, (the videos for a different shape headboard but can be used for this shape to) http://youtu.be/Nyd5QhiFNIU

Here's my finished project, I hope you can see I'm not sure if I can attach a pic :/

Yeah, I'm not sure. I've never had a California King. You'd have to do some research on the measurements. And yes, you'll need a larger foam. I'm not sure if you'd need a CA king. It depends on how tall and wide your headboard is. For example, my headboard is for a queen size bed, but the measurements worked out for getting a full sized memory foam pad.

Hi everyone! I've actually been doing various headboards like these for a couple years, before Pinterest's time, and now I make them for many of my clients. A couple of thoughts from my experience:

1. Don't use IKEA curtains. I love all things IKEA, but sometimes you gotta splurge on real fabric. I know they are cheap, but it's because they're CHEAP. After time of pressure against the headboard and general use, the fabric may start to become loose and saggy because the fabric's too thin and weak to hold such a tightly pulled shape. The buttons will also enventuqlly become looser.

2. Just use premade upholstery nail tacks for the "hammered nail" look. No reason to indivuslly hammer in decorative nails.

3. A little twist that had been particularly popular with my clients- loose the arms and do a wood framed headboard. Wood frame=classic, covered arms=modern. All depends on the overall style of your home. Build an empty frame first, then the headboard separately, and then simply place the headboard into the frame. (I won't post my tutorial since this isn't my blog but you can find similar ones and mine on Pinterest.)

4. Money! Do splurge and get quality fabric, even upholstery fabric! Don't waste a ton of money on wood and other supplies. With the wood frame, you can buy cheap pine or another white wood and simply stain it to a perfect shade for you. Stain is around 10 bucks. With the armed headboard shown in this blog, for the back itself, $11.88 plywood from home depot does the job. It's not weight-bearing furniture, so why spend money on an expensive wood when you don't need to? The 11.88 sheets I get are more than big enough for even king beds, and homedepot with cut it down for you free of charge to your exact measurements. (Use thicker, but not expensive, actual wood for the arms since they are the support.) Last- foam. Target has $20 king size foam pads from Room Essentials. The perfect amount of padding once you add on batting. Buy the king, use scissors to cut it to what you need. Basically the only thing that should be even remotely costly is the fabric. And even then, seriously, every week, just good Hobby Lobby coupon or Jo Ann's coupon. Invest in quality there! You don't want to have to undo the whole project and re upholster every six months because the cheap fabric can't hold up.

I found your link through Pinterest and I'm so glad I did! I bought pretty much all supplies you had linked, except the fabric, and I followed all of your tips (I am especially grateful for the one about how you secured the buttons). Thanks so much for posting this! I found it super helpful.

I just want to add something about that 54" fabric not being quite enough. You can't do what I'm going to suggest if you don't have a sewing machine. If that 54" isn't enough for being able to pull to the back, yet, goes over to the back by just scant inch (s). You need to add an additional fabric to make that 54" into 60 plus or whatever addition you feel comfortable with, the excess can be cut after pulling tight and then stapling. This doesn't need to match but it will give you something to pull taught for stapling. If it were me, I'd add that extra piece to the bottom since it will be covered with the mattress. If you have a question or more clarification: pettifour@yahoo.com

Hi Lisa, I hope you're still enjoying your master bedroom! Thanks for sharing the instructions for the headboard. I'm redoing my daughter's room and will be making one for her. I read all 3 parts of your master make-over! And love it! ...just thought I'd make a tiny suggestion for you to add even more light and sparkle. Consider adding mirrors to the drawer fronts and tops of your side chests. I recently did this to a chest in my guest room and it looks fabulous! I brought the piece into a local glass and mirror company and they cut everything to size, polished the edges AND mounted the drawer fronts for me!! The top is just resting on the top to give me the with and without option of the top mirror. ...Anyway, thanks again! :-D

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